Mission

Young Pioneer Disaster Response implements innovative and sustainable responses to disasters and post-disaster rehabilitation, working to help communities recover quickly and build back more resiliently than before.

Recent Updates

Katlyn Murray on Monster Radio Today our media director Katlyn Murray was interviewed by DJ Jon Chang on Monster Radio BT 105.9 in Cebu. Katlyn spoke about YPDR programs and the need for ongoing support to help the people affected by Typhoon Yolanda Part 1: Part 2: Part 3: Part 4:

Watch this super cool clip from ABS-CBN North America of their interview with the ever awesome Kitchie Nadal as she represented Young Pioneer Disaster Response! The Filipina rockstar talked about her team-up with YPDR, and of our goals and programs for the benefit of Typhoon Yolanda survivors. We hope that this media exposure paves the

Week 4 goes to a very special lady, Aurora Alferez. Our camp momma who’s looked after the team since day one and is an irreplaceable part of the family and member of the YPDR board. If you ever ask her how she is, her answer is “Always good”.

This week we launched our new Housing Retrofit program with the support of the International Labor Organization (ILO). For the next six weeks our Retrofit Team of 32 carpenters will be going door-to-door in seven Barangays assisting families to storm-strengthen their homes, strengthening their structures with hurricane strapping, gussets, timber cleats, cross bracing in the roofs

For our 2nd entrance in our ‘Meet the YPDR Team’ series we interviewed Gerry Caraballe, the legendary international driver of YPDR, his smile and laugh infects everyone who comes here. Let’s see what he had to say.

Last weekend representatives of JCI Manila organization visited YPDR camp with a purpose of checking out our Marine Restoration Program. What was intended to be a simple weekend turned out to be a gathering of epic proportions.

Here is the first of our new “Meet the Team” interview series, where we interview members of Young Pioneer Disaster Response to share their story with everyone. Marking our first entry we have invited Joel Trask to take centre stage.

Designed in partnership with University of San Carlos, our Phase 3 storm-strengthened houses are comprised of selective construction components and techniques which all lend a hand to the integral quality of these typhoon -resistant structures.

YPDR is proud to announce that we will be working with TIGRA, Damgo, Mayor Chris Escario of Bantayan, and 40 local fisherfolk on a recycling awareness and dumpsite rehabilitation project at the Bantayan Municipal Dumpsite on June 4th and 5th.

Our amazing supporter, Magdalena Fijalkowska, continues helping to spread the word about our initiative in Philippines. This time her article and podcast in english appeared in the blog of DW (Deutsche Welle). The focus of this podcast is Maria Lukowska who, being the representative of PAH NGO, is YPDR’s main partner in Bantayan Island. Check

It’s that time of the year again, the summer has come to end which means it back to school for children all across the Philippines. YPDR joined forces with three elementary schools last week in support of Brigada Eskwela 2014 before school starts June 2.

Nothing worth having ever comes easy! YPDR has overcome a lot since our humble beginnings last December. We have persisted through rough conditions in a disaster zone, illness, a constant struggle for funding, and, worst of all, slanderous remarks from people who want to undermine all of our hard work for their own selfish gain.

Cliff Villa, an adjunct professor at Seattle University School of Law and an attorney for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, traveled to the Philippines to mark the reopening of the School of the SEA (Sea and Earth Advocates). During his trip he also visited us in Bantayan Island and checked what has been done here

One of our volunteers (Magdalena Fijalkowska) happens to be a radio journalist at Polskie Radio Lublin, public radio from Poland. If you speak Polish, read or listen to a report on her experience with YPDR, broadcasted in the Radio News Programme, here. Also check out her photo report.

Great news for YPDR! Today Carmel L. Durano, the Honorary Consul for Poland in the Philippines, Red H. Durano, the former congressman of the 5th district in Cebu and the current Vice Mayor of Danao City, and their friends from Singapore Olivier and Tess Grawehr came to take a look at our housing and school

Today we started creating our pilot permaculture garden next to our first Phase 3 model house. It was a hot sunny day but our volunteers nonetheless vigorously built garden beds and paths. Thanks to our resident permaculturist Nick Brown for leading this awesome project which we hope to duplicate in other homes.

We are happy to announce our new partnership with Radyo Natin Madridejos, 102.9 fm!! Every Wednesday at 10am Katlyn Murray and Carlos Lo Pez will bring you Pioneer Power Hour, a new radio show featuring YPDR’s projects and activities as well as useful information and interesting content regarding Bantayan Island, with special focus on the

YPDR is currently developing its Phase 3 model house. The first Phase 3 model home, which is being built for our facilitator Chad and his family, contains structural improvements designed to make the home safer and more functional. The new model contains concrete posts which make the foundation stronger and slanted walls which give the

We’ve had a big past few days here at YPDR! Yesterday, we helped Malteser International to deliver a truckload of school supplies, 45 tents, and 25 temporary shelter kits. Today, our school crew headed out to Guiwanon to work on rehabilitating classrooms, painting a mural, and running educational programs with the kids. We nearly finished

Helimission took us up to do a damage survey of Bantanyan Island and its outer Islands – what we found was heartbreaking. Help support us build storm strengthened shelter homes, and rebuild the Island’s schools by visiting www.ypdr.org

Here’s a look at some of the houses that YPDR has built in conjunction with Polish Humanitarian Action (PAH). This project is going strong with more pictures to come! Help us continue to build homes by visiting www.ypdr.org

YPDR now has a puppeteer crew to help with our beach cleaning program. The team has been putting on shows to help teach the kids about keeping the environment clean. The puppet show involves a trash monster and fun songs about the environment that get the kids involved!

Today YPDR got to work on Santa Fe High School and Elementary School. The team removed debris, did some landscaping, and built trash bins and banners. Both schools are showing a night and day difference from the way they looked when the YPDR team arrived on Bantayan Island.

It’s a collaborative effort here on Bantayan Island! Today YPDR worked in conjunction with one of our partner organizations, SAMU, to provide medical treatment to 107 people in desperate need in Barangay Sungko. YPDR located patients for SAMU’s medical professionals during surveys that we were conducting to review the progress of the homes we are

Healthy Oceans, Healthy Planet. Caitlin Flannery, Kataw Foundation. The oceans supply us with the majority of our oxygen. Tiny ocean plants called phytoplankton use photosynthesis to grow and contribute 50-80% of the oxygen in our atmosphere! [ http://earthsky.org/…/how-much-do-oceans-add-to-worlds-oxyg…] Fish are the most consumed protein worldwide and much of the people in low-lying island nations, like our

For two and a half years now, progress for YPDR, under the auspices of Kataw Foundation, has always been positive and steady to say the very least, but every now and again we make major advances. Among our biggest steps forward was the day we first met and were given a thumbs up by the

Revisiting YPDR on Bantayan Island 2 Years After Typhoon Yolanda Wow, two years sure has flown by! It was in 2013 when Typhoon Yolanda brought such horror and destruction to the Philippines. I happened to be backpacking throughout Southeast Asia at the time and since I didn’t have a specific timeline, I did some research

Beautiful Bantayan is what people call the island, those of us who have been blessed enough to have seen it or even lived here. Without using cliches, the beaches, sunsets and coconut trees are simply outstanding, however without the people who are born and raised on the island, the best photographs make but simple souvenirs.

SUSTAINABLE USE OF BAMBOO As much of the world is talking of overpopulation and us running out of resources, along with global warming and climate change, some are beginning to focus greatly on sustainability and protecting what planet earth provides for us, while others are reversing the damage already caused by the greedy and

Thank you to our long term friends and supporters the Enrique Zobel Foundation, YPDR.org is now the only facility on Bantayan Island with a dive compressor. This equipment will allow us to take our marine restoration programme to the next level! In partnership with University of San Carlos’ marine biology division and world famous environmental